NPR on Meatless Mondays

Meatless Monday is an idea that’s been around for a while, and one I incorporate into this blog in ‘A Weeks Worth of Recipes’.

The idea is not only for vegetarians, it’s for all of us. A day to give the earth a small break from the massive impact the meat industry has on our great planet. It’s also a day to give our bodies a rest from meats that often lead to high cholesterol and heart disease.

Sid Lerner, 79, is a retired NY ad exec. who started his own non-profit to spread the word on Meatless Mondays.

“When Lerner researched the numbers on just how much meat Americans were really consuming, he was surprised. Back in 1950, when Lerner was a young man, the norm was about 2.8 pounds of meat a week. Jump forward to 2006, and consumption increased about 50 percent. Meat isn’t the only source of saturated fat, and there are plenty of lean cuts of meat. But overall, Lerner says it just seemed like way too much”. Often you hear people say things like “people have always been eating this way” or “my grandpa lived until he was 100 and he loved his steak”. Those statements may be true, but the quantities are SO much greater now. Not to mention the fact that were not factory farms like there are now.

The word is spreading fast. Soccer moms are on board, as well as chefs like Wolfgang Puck and Mario Batali. The program is also benefiting 80,000 Baltimore school children and university dining halls like U of C- Davis and Yale.